Rep. Bill Owens (D-Plattsburgh) was voicing his support today for newly confirmed Veterans Administration Secretary Robert McDonald, the former Procter & Gamble executive who was nominated for the position last month.

Even though, as a House member, he did not get a chance to vote on the confirmation, he was pleased as the Senate voted 97 to 0 this afternoon to confirm McDonald.

“Our nation’s veterans deserve the best care possible,” said Owens a retired Air Force officer. “To do that we need to change both the culture and the structure of the VA. With his management experience, the new VA secretary has the tools to address urgent and long-standing problems and deliver the system-wide quality of care our veterans deserve.”

According to Owens, critical issues facing the new VA administrator include access problems and excessive wait-times for veterans seeking care, a “corrosive culture” in the organization, problems with accountability and compensation, and a steady flow of veterans returning from conflict zones, some of whom will need a lifetime of care for their sacrifices.

The VA inspector general has ongoing investigations at nearly 70 department sites and is looking into possible criminal charges through the Department of Justice against those who falsified or manipulated data.

Washington lawmakers recently announced a VA reform deal that would give veterans access to community hospitals when appointments or services are not available at a nearby VA facility.

A vote on this legislation is expected to come in the House later in the week.